


Après La Pluie, Le Beau Temps

by Dragonfire719



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canonical Character Death, Character Study, Depression, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, I took the "love-triangle" joke and ran with it, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Miscommunication, Mostly Ren-centric, NG+, New Game Plus, Not Beta Read, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Persona 5: The Royal Spoilers, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Self-Indulgent, Slow Burn, Slow To Update, Time Travel, Trauma, Trust Issues, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unreliable Narrator
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:53:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24190858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dragonfire719/pseuds/Dragonfire719
Summary: Ren Amamiya's life ends the moment he is arrested. Sent away to Tokyo while on probation for an entire year, he plans to live an honest student life and not get involved with anything at all. Truly, feigning ignorance to all of society's problems is a sure fire way to prevent his future from going up in smoke.Isn't apathy such a wonderful thing?Of course, a talking cat, a detective, and even parts of his own inner psyche just can't seem to agree with that plan.At least the blue butterfly he keeps seeing everywhere won't force him into anything.(In which Ren is bitter, Lavenza is trying her best, Morgana is confused, the Phantom Thieves are experiencing some serious deja vu, and Akechi may or may not know what he's doing.)
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Amamiya Ren, Amamiya Ren & Lavenza (Persona Series), Amamiya Ren/Yoshizawa Sumire, Maruki Takuto & Persona 5 Protagonist, Morgana & Persona 5 Protagonist, Persona 5 Protagonist & Phantom Thieves of Hearts, Persona 5 Protagonist & Sakura Sojiro
Comments: 10
Kudos: 82





	Après La Pluie, Le Beau Temps

_ Water splashes him without warning. Each breath he takes comes out in choking gasps. His head hurts, his entire body aches, and he can hardly breathe. There are men in black standing above him, scornful looks on all their faces. _

  
  


_ How did he get here again? There's something important that he needs to do. _

  
  


_ Everything's fuzzy. He can't remember. _

  
  


_ The tip of the syringe glistens, cold metal digs into his wrist, heartbeat slow, dulled from the drug injections. _

  
  


_ A gun is pointed at his head. Something warm drips down his face. No sound but the wet thud against the table. _

  
  


_ "What a pity. It appears that you have lost the game--" _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


He wakes up with a jolt from a dream he can never recall. Letting out a sigh, he forces himself to relax just as a flash of annoyance courses within him. He had fallen asleep again.

  
  


He's still riding the train, just as he had been all those hours ago before he had fallen asleep. He takes some relief in not having missed his stop. 

  
  


Looking around he can see various articles, many of which detail dangerous events. He shouldn't be surprised at the endless amount of negativity he keeps seeing, but he is anyway. He spots one about the rise of teenage delinquency and another about the current crime rate of Japan. He clutches his bag tighter to his chest, eyes downcast. 

  
  


Of course.  _ Of course. _

  
  


He spares a glance around him. There aren't many people onboard, but far more than what he's normally used to seeing. Two girls are nearby chatting. He's pretty sure that earlier they had been discussing some sort of psychotic breakdown incidents. It had only served to add to his already increasing anxiety so he ended up tuning them out. Currently, one of the girls is showing the other something on her phone. The screen shows a boy seemingly around his age with light brown hair. 

  
  


_ The next Detective Prince, huh? _

  
  


Suddenly, he notices they stopped talking. He quickly looks away, pretending that he hadn't just been staring. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


When he gets off at the station he pulls out his own phone in a hopeless effort to navigate the city of Tokyo. It's even larger than what he had expected and there's so many people around. He seems so small among the height of the buildings. Sound buzzes all around him, so much noise reverberating in his ears. The streets are packed and he vaguely wonders how there's even enough room to fit them all. He's never been to the city before. One hell of a first time really. 

  
  


Not long after something pops up on his phone's screen, blocking his only source of navigation. It doesn't look like any kind of malware he's seen before, but either way it's an annoyance. He needs to know where the hell he's going in this massive city,  _ so go away please. _ Just as his attempts to get rid of it only make it worse, he finally notices that the voices and sounds of the city surrounding him had come to a stop. Only it wasn't just the sound, everything stopped moving as though time itself had ceased. 

  
  


It's eerie having all that sound, movement,  _ life _ , freeze in just an instant. 

  
  


He looks around him, heart thundering in his chest. 

  
  


In the distance he can see a burst of blue fire raging on almost taking the form of some kind of demon. He stares dead ahead not breaking eye contact for anything. In a split second he sees his own face staring back at him wearing a wide grin filled with malice and eyes of pure rage, a look of triumph and vicious glee. It disappears as soon as he blinks and time resumes as though the event had never happened. 

  
  


Maybe it hadn't.

  
  


He wastes no time in deleting the app. It was probably just a figment of his imagination caused by nerves anyway. 

  
  


Honestly though.

  
  


_ Not even a day in Tokyo and I'm already seeing things. _

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


He manages to get to Yongen-Jaya without any major issues. The streets are tight, but it's still far better than the open streets of the city. 

  
  


His shoulders are hunched, one hand in his pocket, the other holding a small piece of paper. An address with the name Sojiro Sakura is written on it. It's practically useless because he has no idea where that is. 

  
  


Eventually, he manages to ask the police officer for directions on where he's supposed to go while simultaneously stomping down the emotion of discomfort that threatens to overcome his senses. He doesn't know why the sight of the police keeps filling him with unease. It's idiotic. 

  
  


_ He doesn't even know you; what part of you screams delinquent? _

  
  


It doesn't matter, he thinks as he rings the doorbell. When no one answers he considers if his future caretaker had found him too difficult to deal with after all and changed his mind. After the nearby delivery man directs him to visit a coffee shop named Leblanc, he chases the thought out of his mind. How could he possibly change his mind so quickly when they've never even met? At least give the man time to develop an irritation at his presence first. That's usually how it goes, anyway.

  
  


He takes a deep breath and steps into the coffee shop. 

  
  


The first thought that crosses his mind once he enters is that it's cozy. The shop is dimly lit and not especially large. A middle aged man is doing a crossword puzzle as an elderly couple drinks their coffee in a nearby booth. The TV blares on in the corner. 

  
  


As the couple leaves he once again overhears news of the accidents that have been occurring more frequently. Great, even more anxiety. 

  
  


The middle aged man, who he assumes is the manager, gets up as he takes notice of the teenager in his shop. If he is the manager, then he's also the man who'll be in charge of him for the year. Unless the delivery man from earlier was mistaken, which would be just his luck wouldn't it? Luckily, it turns out that his assumption was correct, so that saves him from any more embarrassment from this entire situation. At least for now. 

  
  


He bows his head, thanks him, tries to be as polite as possible, no point in pissing him off. If he's to be in this man's care for the next year then he might as well start off with a decent first impression. He wonders just what this man has heard; what conclusions he's made up in his head. He can imagine all kinds of things. They're written all over the man's face. Irresponsible, troublemaker, should have just stayed in line because  _ look where it gets you _ . 

  
  


As the man, Sojiro Sakura, shows him where he'll be staying for the year, he's immediately greeted with an attic cluttered with random junk. The room is filled with dust, cobwebs cling to the ceiling, and he notices his bed is nothing more than a mattress sitting on a few concrete blocks in the corner. The message is clear: out of sight, out of mind. 

  
  


"You look like you want to say something," Sakura asks him. The man's gaze almost dares him to say something he'll regret. 

  
  


It's cluttered, he doesn't say. Instead--

  
  


"It's big." 

  
  


Sakura talks some more and he listens entirely silent. Only when the topic why he's being forced to live here comes up does he speak out of turn. 

  
  


The night of his arrest is like a permanent mark his mind is at war with itself to forget. He can still see the woman's expression clear as day as she pleaded for anyone to hear her, to help her, to  _ notice _ , but he can't recall the bald man's face as it drips with blood no matter how hard he tries. 

  
  


So he gets the gist of his situation, huh? As if. He doesn't know a damn thing,  _ how dare he-- _

  
  


A breath. 

  
  


_ Stop thinking about it, just calm down, get a grip already. _

  
  


Anger helps no one.

  
  


He opens his mouth for once hoping to correct his assumption. It doesn't work, because of course it doesn't. He's an idiot for trying, Sakura's the same, they're all the same. What's the point in trying to defend himself; no one would believe him anyway. 

  
  


He remembers the judge's uncaring face as he delivers the verdict, the look of disapproval and disdain on everyone's faces, his own pleas to believe him, to  _ trust _ him, falling on deaf ears. 

  
  


Stupid. So very stupid. 

  
  


He let's a quiet “okay” at the end of Sakura's speech. No point in arguing. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


The trip to his new school goes just as he expected. He had blanked on the name when Sakura mentioned it at first, because honestly, who thought " _ prison _ " academy was an okay name? It's like the start of a cruel joke. He'd hope that it wouldn't be indicative of the kind of high school experience he'd have to endure, but he knows better. 

  
  


They meet the principal, a man who looks like he's never exercised a day in his life, and his homeroom teacher. The woman, Ms. Kawakami, looked like she wanted to be anywhere but there, which is something he can relate to more than he cares to admit. 

  
  


All the trip really amounts to is more lecturing on his situation. As if he doesn't already know. Yeah, yeah, he's a failure to society and one single step out of line and his life is officially over. He gets it already, but people keep feeling the need to continue drilling it into his skull. How annoying. 

  
  


Another reminder from Sakura not to fuck up his life even further and they're on their way. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


The ride back is no more uncomfortable than on the way there. In other words, very. The air is suffocating, the atmosphere stiff. 

  
  


It feels like an eternity as they sit in traffic. None of the cars seem to be moving an inch and there's so many of them, far more than he's ever seen at once.

  
  


Sakura angrily tells him that he'll be taking the train to school tomorrow, which is fine by him. He didn't expect anything less, and at least it wouldn't be so awkward. Meanwhile, the radio announces even more news on the topic that everyone can't seem to shut up about. And maybe he'd be more sympathetic if he wasn't so irritated with everything else, but as it stands it doesn't concern him so why not ignore it best he can? 

  
  


After an awkward beat, Sakura asks him if he'll be able handle the school, tone less rough than before. He'll manage, he tells him. And if not, well, he'd better suck it up. There's nowhere to go but downhill from here. 

  
  


Once most of the initial discomfort passes, he can't help but ask what's been on his mind for a while. 

  
  


"Why did you take me in?"

  
  


For a second, Sakura looks surprised, but it's gone as soon as he notices it. 

  
  


"I was asked to do it," Sakura answers. "And I just. . . Happened to agree to it."

  
  


Well, that's not quite what he expected.

  
  


"I've already been paid for it too, after all," the man finishes. And there it is, the true reason. Of course it's money, why else would anyone bother. What was he expecting, some sort of confession about how Sakura doesn't think he's such a bad kid after all? Or maybe a tale of his parents actually caring about his well being? How ridiculous. 

  
  


Sakura isn't finished it seems. "Anyway, don't get yourself involved in any nonsense. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. And no matter what happens, pretend like you didn't see it. Got it?" 

  
  


"Yes." 

  
  


His grip on his knee tightens. 

  
  


As if it's that easy. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


He eats a bowl of instant ramen for dinner. It's nothing much, but he figures the amount he packed from home should hold him over for a while until he gets a job to pay for better meals. If he can even get a job that is. His criminal record is a short fire way to get him blacklisted from any job he attempts. But so long as they don't find out, he should be able to get by. After all, he doesn't expect to be given any money from Sakura. His own parents didn't give him any, why would a random stranger be any different? 

  
  


He's always been nothing more than a nuisance. 

  
  


Speaking of which, his thumb hovers over the contact list on his phone. Should he call them? Let them know he arrived safely and everything went okay? Tell them how he's feeling? 

  
  


He dismisses the thought. 

  
  


Gazing back at his phone, he figures that he might as well check the train schedule before he sleeps. Wouldn't want to get lost on his first day. It's just as tedious as he thought it'd be. Once he's done praying that he'll remember all of it, he notices a certain app back onto his phone, a little red square with an image similar to an eye. How creepy. He's pretty sure he already deleted it. Ah, whatever, time to do it again. At this point, he should probably reboot his phone later just in case. 

  
  


He lets out a breath, relaxing back on the mattress of the old attic. 

  
  


Probation. Criminal Record. A whole year. 

  
  


That night. . . He couldn't just let that go. He thought he was doing the right thing. Now, he can't even tell what that is anymore. 

  
  


His eyelids feel heavy. He's so tired. Time to go to sleep. 

  
  


There's nothing he can do about it now. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


His dreams that night are filled with handcuffs digging into bleeding wrists and the dropping blade of a guillotine carrying out his execution. 

  
  


A blue butterfly passes by, unseen. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


In the morning, he almost forgets where he is. Sometimes it feels like he'd wake up one day all of this mess would be nothing more than a dream. But of course he doesn't have that kind of luck. 

  
  


Ignoring the initial disappointment, he gets dressed and goes downstairs where Sakura is already behind the counter. He is then given curry for breakfast, which, okay, weird, but it tastes amazing so there's that. Maybe he'd get a chance to eat some more of it in the future. 

  
  


He doesn't get lost in the train station, but it does rain on his way to school, because of course it does. Sure, he likes rain, but there's a huge difference between watching and listening to the rainfall than actually being in it. 

  
  


He just  _ knows _ it'll make his hair even frizzier. 

  
  


Other students race by in an attempt to escape the water falling from the sky as he stands under the awning of a nearby shop. Some of them even have the same uniform as him. 

  
  


He's staring at the map on his phone when he finally notices someone standing next to him. The girl to his left pulls down the hood of her jacket letting her two pigtails fall to her shoulders. Light blue eyes and hair. Most likely a foreigner of some sort. She's definitely beautiful, and he finds himself staring. 

  
  


She looks over at him, then to his hair. She reaches out to his head and then in her hand is a pink flower petal. 

  
  


"You had this stuck in your hair," she smiles. "The wind's been blowing them all over the place." 

  
  


And sure enough, there are petals scattered all throughout the street that he hadn't noticed before. 

  
  


"Ah, thank you. . " 

  
  


A moment later and they both turn away, waiting for the rain to stop. 

  
  


A car pulls up to them. The driver rolls down the window asking them if they need a ride. The girl accepts while the man asks him if he needs one as well. He awkwardly declines.

  
  


He catches her sullen expression just as the car drives off.

  
  


_ "And no matter what happens, pretend like you didn't see it." _

  
  


The rain lets up and he's on his way. 

  
  


It's not any of his business. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


He sees a boy with bleached blond hair cursing after tripping over a cat. How vulgar.

  
  


He looks away and keeps on walking.

  
  


He ignores the nagging feeling that he missed something important. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


_ "Was your previous decision a mistake then?" _

  
  


No matter how many times the question is asked, Ren doesn't know the answer.

**Author's Note:**

> And thus marks my first Persona 5 fic. I've been thinking about this idea for a while, but I just now got to writing it. Hope you guys enjoy this as much as me. 
> 
> Also, as stated in the tags, I'm planning on incorporating some elements from Royal, but you don't need to worry about P5R spoilers for quite some time. I still haven't decided on how I'm going to handle some of the new characters from it anyway. Telling you what I mean by that would be spoiling it. Funnily enough though, I started writing this before the English release (but after the Japanese one). It just wasn’t until I bought a Chromebook that I got around to posting this. 
> 
> Regardless, keep in mind that this isn't going to be a direct one to one translation from the game. A few creative liberties will be taken (mostly due to poor memory).


End file.
